Table of Contents
Prologue: The Room xi
Introduction 1
Part I What Larks?: The Conundrum of the Connected Life
1 Busy, Very Busy: In a Digital World, Where's the Depth? 9
2 Hello, Mother: The Magic of Screens 21
3 Gone Overboard: Falling Out with the Connected Life 37
4 Solutions That Aren't: The Trouble with Not Really Meaning It 67
Part II Beyond the Crowd: Teachings of the Seven Philosophers of Screens
5 Walking to Heaven: Plato Discovers Distance 83
6 The Spa of the Mind: Seneca on Inner Space 101
7 Little Mirrors: Gutenberg and the Business of Inwardness 121
8 Hamlet's BlackBerry: Shakespeare on the Beauty of Old Tools 137
9 Inventing Your Life: Ben Franklin on Positive Rituals 157
10 The Walden Zone: Thoreau on Making the Home a Refuge 175
11 A Cooler Self: McLuhan and the Thermostat of Happiness 193
Part III In Search of Depth: Ideas in Practice
12 Not So Busy: Practical Philosophies for Every Day 209
13 Disconnectopia: The Internet Sabbath 223
Afterword: Back to the Room 235
Acknowledgments 241
Notes 245
Further Reading 263